AGRICULTURE NEWS - The inquiry would focus specifically on apples, citrus, bananas, pears, table grapes, potatoes, onions, carrots, cabbage, tomatoes and spinach, which accounted for 70% of fresh produce production and sales throughout South Africa.

Doris Tshepe, commissioner of the CompCom, said the inquiry was initiated in response to complaints about anticompetitive conduct in the fresh produce value chain, high levels of concentration in the agriculture sector, and food price studies that found alarming levels of price increases and volatility in the pricing of various food products.

Hardin Ratshisusu, deputy commissioner of the CompCom, who would chair the inquiry, said the process would evaluate the efficiency of the value chain by looking at national fresh produce markets as a route to market for farmers, as well as direct contracting between farmers and retailers, wholesalers and processors.

Read the full article here on the Caxton publication, Farmer's Weekly

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